In a significant judicial development, the High Court in Port Harcourt has cleared the way for Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara to continue conducting official business with three members of the state House of Assembly, who have not vacated their seats despite a long-standing political rift. This ruling comes after a tense legal battle surrounding the validity of the state’s 2024 budget presentation and the composition of the House of Assembly.
On December 20, 2024, Justice Sika Aprioku delivered a decisive judgment in favour of Governor Fubara, dismissing a lawsuit filed by the Registered Trustees of the Association of Legislative Drafting and Advocacy Practitioners. The claimants had sought to compel Fubara to re-present the 2024 budget to a faction of the Assembly led by Martin Amaewhule, who is opposed to the governor.
At the core of the case was the question of whether the state’s 2024 budget could be validly presented to a House of Assembly with fewer than the required 24 members. The plaintiff argued that such an action undermined the proper functioning of the state government, citing the absence of a full quorum.
However, the judge sided with the defendant, referencing a precedent from the tenure of former Governor Nyesom Wike, who successfully worked with just six members of the Assembly between December 2015 and February 2017. During this period, Wike’s administration passed key legislative measures, including the 2017 appropriation bill.
In his ruling, Justice Aprioku noted, “The same way Governor Nyesom Wike presented Budgets and financial Bills with only six members when the numbers were less than two-thirds of the full 32 members, so shall Governor Siminalayi Fubara be constitutionally guided to engage with the properly constituted House of Assembly led by Oko-Jumbo.”
Court Rejects Call to Re-Present Budget to Defectors
The court categorically dismissed the plaintiff’s demand that the budget be re-presented to the faction of lawmakers who had defected. These defectors, according to the ruling, had automatically vacated their seats, and the governor was not legally bound to engage with them. “The claimants’ request for declaratory and injunctive reliefs seeking to have the budget presented to the former 27 lawmakers who defected lacks merit,” the court concluded.
As a result, the lawsuit filed by the association was dismissed, and a cost of N500,000 was awarded to the defendants. The judgment further confirmed that Fubara could continue his governance activities with the three lawmakers who have not defected, including presenting the 2024 budget, making board appointments, and performing other constitutional duties.
The Turbulent Political Climate in Rivers State
This ruling comes amid ongoing political turbulence in Rivers State. Since the beginning of 2023, the state’s legislature has been embroiled in a factional crisis, as political loyalty lines have shifted between Governor Fubara and his predecessor, Nyesom Wike, now the Minister for the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
A key point of contention has been the 2024 state budget, which was initially presented by Fubara in December 2023 to a five-member faction led by Edison Ehie. However, the budget was immediately challenged in the courts, with critics arguing that the presentation violated the constitutional requirement for a fully constituted legislative body.
In January 2024, a Federal High Court in Abuja ruled that Fubara must re-present the budget to a “legally constituted” House of Assembly, led by Amaewhule, the pro-Wike faction’s leader. This ruling was followed by a request from the Amaewhule faction for an injunction preventing the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and other financial institutions from recognising Fubara’s financial instructions.
Court Ruling on Financial Disbursements
In October 2023, a federal court temporarily halted the disbursement of state funds, citing the unconstitutional presentation of the 2024 budget. Judge Joyce Abdulmalik ruled that without a validly constituted Assembly, no financial allocations should be made to the state. However, in December 2024, the Court of Appeal overturned this decision, allowing the CBN to release funds to the state government.
Despite the legal setbacks, Fubara has continued to press forward with his administration’s agenda. On January 4, 2025, he signed the N1.18 trillion budget into law, signaling the resolution of the budget impasse, at least on his side.
Political Allegiances and the Future of Governance in Rivers
The conflict within the Rivers State House of Assembly is emblematic of the broader political divisions in the state. Fubara, a member of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), has found himself at odds with the faction led by Amaewhule, who has strong ties to former Governor Wike. The rivalry between these two factions has made the legislative process in the state increasingly contentious.
In addition to the budget disputes, the composition of the Assembly has been a point of ongoing tension. In October 2023, Ehie, a key figure in Fubara’s camp, resigned to become Chief of Staff to the governor, paving the way for Oko-Jumbo to assume the role of Speaker for the four-member faction.
As the legal battles continue, both factions are expected to intensify their efforts to gain control of the Assembly, with the outcome of the legal disputes likely to determine the political direction of Rivers State in the coming months.
Fubara’s Next Steps
Governor Fubara, for his part, has remained steadfast in his stance. In response to the court’s decision, he emphasized that the ruling reinforced his administration’s legitimacy and affirmed his right to govern the state effectively. “This ruling ensures that the business of governance in Rivers State will not be held hostage by a handful of politicians who are bent on undermining the will of the people,” Fubara said in a statement following the judgment.
With the court’s latest ruling, Fubara is now in a position to proceed with critical state functions, including key appointments and the implementation of the state budget, without interference from the rival faction. However, with political loyalties still deeply divided and legal battles continuing, the future of governance in Rivers remains uncertain, and the state could face further legal challenges in the coming months.
